Education
Ph.D. in Psychology (Cognitions and Instruction) from Grand Canyon University
M.S. in Psychology from Grand Canyon University
M.S. in Counselor Education from Jacksonville State University
B.A. in Psychology from Grambling State University
Biography
Dr. Tiffany Sayles is a Psychology Chair and Professor at Talladega College where she has taught since 2017. Dr. Sayles has maintained a passion for psychology since high school which led to her majoring in and completing her first degree in psychology. After graduating, she pursued her career in counseling before furthering studies in psychology. Dr. Sayles started her family while employed as a counselor within various settings over the next twelve years. Most years were invested in the educational system. As a school counselor, Dr. Sayles earned awards including Spotlight Educator, Teacher of the Year at Oscar Adams Elementary and Gadsden City Schools, as well as Community Leadership in Excellence Award.
Dr. Sayles completed a M.S. in Psychology in 2016 extended instruction to include higher education. Dr. Sayles continued to serve as an elementary counselor while expanding love for instruction and guidance to the college population. After serving as Adjunct Instructor for four years, in Fall 2021, Dr. Sayles transitioned from full-time school counselor to full-time instruction at Talladega College concurrent with pursuit of her Doctor of Philosophy in General Psychology: Cognition and Instruction (Quantitative Research).
Dr. Sayles has served as an advisor to the HBCU Mental Health Student Advisory Board. Mrs. Sayles also participated in the UNCF LAIC Leadership Team at Talladega College which yielded a lesson study and two articles in the E-magazine from the topic Teaching to Reach. The articles explored multimodal learning in which the presentation of multiple modalities enables students to retain and recall instruction. Maximizing the delivery techniques builds connections for learning and success. Dr. Sayles has presented at the National Teaching Professor Conference both online and in person. She has also been invited to serve as a panelist at the National Institute of Scientific Teaching in Denver, Colorado this fall. Her passion for student success has led to her earning the title as Favorite Professor multiple times by the SGA/Student Council.
Research Interests
Dr. Sayles research interests include self-regulated learning skills, commitment and GPA in African American Students. Dr. Sayles has been working closely with the Macmillan Research Team to explore tools to support minority student success. Ongoing research expounds on this topic with the persistence of African American students. Dr. Sayles’ passion for student success fuels the exploration of instructional methods to promote success for each student. Dr. Sayles is now able to merge years of counseling experience and education into future research and instruction.
Courses Taught (at Talladega College and adjunct roles)
General Psychology
Introduction to Psychology
History of Psychology
Developmental Psychology
Human Growth and Development
Psychology of Personal Growth
Child Psychology
Problems in Childhood/Adolescence
Applied Psychology
Behavioral Analysis
Forensic Psychology
Psychology of Social Media
Abnormal Psychology
Theories of Personality
Physiological Psychology
Experimental Psychology
Group Dynamics
Social Psychology
Internship in Psychology
Marriage and Family Dynamics
